TPP 091a: A Conversation With Steve Silberman About His Book “Neurotribes”

My guest this week is Steve Silberman, an award-winning science writer who authored the 2015 book NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity, a brilliant book that upends conventional thinking about autism and suggests a broader model for acceptance, understanding, and full participation in society for people who think differently. In our conversation, Steve and I talk about neurodivergence, autism, acceptance, tolerance, changing cultures, systemic change, and so much more. 

 Steve Silberman is an award-winning science writer whose articles have appeared in Wired, the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Financial Times, the Boston Globe, the MIT Technology Review, and more.and the author of NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity (Avery 2015), which Oliver Sacks called a “sweeping and penetrating history…presented with a rare sympathy and sensitivity.” In April 2016, Silberman gave the keynote speech at the United Nations for World Autism Awareness Day. He has given talks on the history of autism at Yale, Harvard, MIT, Oxford, the National Academy of Sciences, Queen Mary University, Apple, Microsoft, Google, the 92nd Street Y, Imperial College London, the MIND Institute at UC Davis, and many other major institutions. His TED talk, “The Forgotten History of Autism,” has been viewed more than a million times and translated into 25 languages.

Things you’ll learn from this episode

• The impetus for Steve’s book NeuroTribes
• How and why the anti-vaccine movement has negatively affected the autistic community
• The real impact of language like “epidemic” in relation to neurodifferences like autism
• How Steve’s book NeuroTribes has been received by members of the autistic community
• Steve’s thoughts on how parents raising neurodiverse kids can best support the neurodiversity movement
• The importance of autistic peer mentoring

Resources mentioned for Steve Silberman, autism, and neurodiversity

• Steve Silberman’s website
• NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity by Steve Silberman
• Steve Silberman’s TED Talk
• The Geek Syndrome (Steve’s article in Wired Magazine, 12/01/01)
• Autreat
• The Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism
• The Real Experts: Readings for Parents of Autistic Children
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